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news.Velcura Therapeutics has announced the successful completion of Phase I clinical trial for its lead compound, VEL-0230, which the company is investigating as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and other bone diseases.
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In extensive preclinical studies, VEL-0230 proved to be a powerful anti-inflammatory agent that also stimulates bone formation and inhibits bone loss. Taken together, these characteristics strongly suggest this drug may be an important therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.
VEL-0230 is being studied as an orally available molecule that promotes bone formation, inhibits bone loss and reduces inflammation. If successful in RA patients Velcura Therapeutics plans to study it as a treatment for other bone disorders, such as bone loss related to multiple myeloma, bone metastases, and osteoporosis.
Michael Long, president and CEO of Velcura, said: “The successful completion of the first studies in healthy human volunteers is an important milestone in developing VEL-0230 as a therapy. During this initial safety study in humans, the drug caused a rapid (within 15 minutes) and marked (80%) reduction in CTx levels, a biomarker of bone resorption. Our next step is to evaluate the drug for efficacy in RA patients.”